Trump says White House staff’s lives are in danger after court halts ballroom construction until Congress approves

President Donald Trump derided a federal appeals court ruling halting construction of his White House ballroom and demanding he seek congressional approval, insisting it would “severely jeopardize the lives and welfare” of White House staff.

In a lengthy Truth Social post Friday afternoon, the president said two judges on the D.C. Court of Appeals had made a “politically motivated” and “totally wrong” decision and characterized his White House ballroom project as crucial for national security.

“The Circuit Court’s decision, which is totally wrong on the vital subject of STANDING, of which the plaintiff has none, severely jeopardizes the lives and welfare of the people who work, and will be working, at the White House — including all future Presidents of the United States, and their families, as well as the lives of all those visiting…” Trump wrote.

In a 2-1 decision, the appellate judges said the president was only a “temporary tenant” of the White House and had unprecedentedly knocked down the East Wing, paid for with American tax dollars, to build a 90,000-square-foot space without consulting Congress.

But Trump disagreed and further characterized his project as a national security matter because the administration is building an underground bunker, complete with a military facility, emergency operation center and more.

“It is all tied together as one big, expensive, and very complex unit, which is vital for National Security and Military Operations of the United States of America!” Trump wrote.

Though the president is insisting the project should continue, the judge’s ruling allows necessary national security construction to continue as legal challenges play out. It only halts above-ground, non-national security-related construction.

The court’s ruling will take effect for two weeks to give the Trump administration time to appeal to the Supreme Court, which the president said he would do.

Judge Patricia Millet, an Obama appointee, and Judge Brad Garcia, a Biden appointee, ruled in favor of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the group suing the administration to stop construction of the ballroom.

“We are aware of no instance in American history in which a President unilaterally and using privately collected funds demolished substantial portions of the White House that Congress authorized to be built and American taxpayers paid for. Until now,” they wrote.

In doing so, they agreed with a lower court ruling, issued in April, that found Trump overstepped his authority when he demolished the East Wing to make room for the new ballroom.

“This holding has nothing at all to do with whether the proposed ballroom is desirable, or not, as a matter of policy. This ruling does not even necessarily mean that the Defendants may not ultimately construct the ballroom. What it does mean is that the Defendants may not do so during the district court’s expeditious litigation without securing Congress’s authorization, as the Constitution and laws require,” the judges added.

Meanwhile, Judge Neomi Rao, a Trump appointee, said she would have sided with the administration.

The Independent has asked the White House for comment.

Last year, Trump announced he would build the new glamorous ballroom, without using American taxpayer dollars, to serve as an entertaining space for state dinners and events.

But much like Trump’s other D.C. beautification projects, the cost, scale and public understanding of the project have changed over time.

The cost of the ballroom has surged from its original $200 million estimate to $400 million – with some believing it could cost upwards of $600 million. While Trump has said private donations will pay for the ballroom itself, in June the administration transferred more than $300 million from the Secret Service budget to cover security upgrades to the White House.

The administration has continued building the ballroom as legal challenges play out, arguing the ballroom is essential for national security because they are building an underground bunker containing a military complex, a hospital and an emergency operations center.

As judges have increasingly ruled against the construction of the White House ballroom, the administration has increasingly characterized the project as a pivotal national security or military project.

In Friday’s Truth Social post, the president referred to the project as “the desperately needed Military Center” even though the dispute is over the ballroom.